Documenting Pregnancy | My Advice for In Home Pregnancy Portraits
Pregnancy; one of my most beloved milestones to capture. A wonderful time to capture the strength and beauty of the human body. This is a session to honor the pregnancy journey.
While it pains me that I can’t help you celebrate with intimate in home sessions right now, I’m excited to share with you tips to help you document this season of life.
I would also like to add, I am currently offering Through the Window sessions, which are contact-less, artful portraits of you through your window/glass doors. I will also be hopefully offering outdoor sessions early summer. You can find out more information about sessions here.
What to wear
Here is a list of suggestions for outfit choices (of course depending on your comfort level and the “look” you would like! Any outfit you choose I ALWAYS suggest something that accents your growing belly).
For those comfortable showing skin, simply wear a bra and neutral colored underwear.
You can also add a beautiful textured shawl/robe, or wrap yourself in a blanket.
Wear a neutral colored nursing tank or cami with a pair of yoga pants or maternity jeans.
Wear a bulky knit sweater (and lift the sweater to show your belly!)
Wear a form fitting maternity dress
Colors that work best; gray, white, ivory, beige, black, blues, dusty pink, dark pink, maroon, and mustard. Avoid super bright colors, and avoid outfits with a busy pattern.
Let’s talk quick about 3 important parts of the camera; Aperture (f-stop), ISO, and shutter speed.
Now, if you are able to adjust these settings on a phone, play around with it! If not, do the best you can with what you are working with.
Aperture (f-stop)
On a camera, this is the hole inside the lens that allows light to pour through. It also controls depth of field (the “blurriness” or “crispness” you see behind your subject). The HIGHER the number (5.6, 7, 16) means LESS light can come through to your camera to expose your picture. The LOWER the number is (1.8, 2.8) the MORE light that can come through to expose. The lower the number, the more “blurry” your background will be as well.
Shutter Speed
Now, aperture and shutter speed go hand in hand. You know the “click” you hear when you snap your phone or camera? That is your shutter, opening and closing at a certain length of time. That shutter length allows for light to enter the camera, to expose your image.
The darker the space (such as inside a home, or at night) will require a LONGER shutter speed. This means there is a greater chance for a blurry image due to movement by either your subject or the hand holding the camera. This is where aperture helps with your shutter speed; the more light you can allow through your “lens” will allow you to have a faster shutter speed and a less blurry image. So my suggestion is to try to shoot with your f-stop as low as your lens will allow so your shutter speed can compensate.
Most professional cameras do have an “Aperture priority” setting which you can select, and this will set the shutter speed automatically with the aperture you choose.
ISO
This is the way your camera reads the “light”. You can usually set this to be automatic, though it is important to know about. This is the third piece of the puzzle to get a good exposure for your image.
Typically indoors my ISO is anywhere between 400 (in a bright room) to 800, sometimes 1600 in a darker room (or on a cloudy day).
The thing with ISO and your camera/phone is that the HIGHER the ISO is, the MORE noise and grain there will be in your image. Typically I embrace that in my work, but if that bothers you then you will want to try to avoid your ISO being that high (again, by fiddling with shutter speed and aperture and getting the most light within the space you are in).
please note, there are ways to minorly decrease noise and grain in editing software.
Typically in a session I try to keep my ISO around 800, my aperture around 1.8, 2.8, or 3.5), and my shutter speed at least 1/250th to get a good exposure (without blurry images). Play around with your camera to see how it works!
Find the light
This is the most important part of ANY picture I take. I search out the natural sunlight pouring into my client’s home, and utilize spaces that have that. For most of the homes I photograph there is light found within the bedroom, in the living room, the sunroom, etc. Use these spaces.
Just as we talked about the key components of the camera, finding an abundance of light within a room (or a space with a beautiful pocket of light) will be your friend for a well exposed, (hopefully) non blurry image.
Pay attention to the light
The light is your best friend. The light will guide you in creating deep, beautiful portraits. Here are my tips for using the light within your space:
Face your subject (or yourself!) towards the light the best you can (towards the window).
Watch how the light enters the space; certain times of day will create harsher casts of light. You’ll want soft light pouring in through a window, not the “harsh” light of the sun directly beaming through the window. Make sure your blinds are open.
Turn off all indoor lights to avoid orange/yellow color hitting your subject, and to avoid weird shadows.
For a more silhouette images, shoot directly into the window! (see below for an example)
Poses
As a visual person, I’m going to show you my favorite, simple poses! Don’t forget to take a couple with the both of you (or family!) to document this time (You can use a tripod to achieve that).
Whatever you do, remember to always connect with your belly, and with the people you are in pictures with (for couples and families, tilt heads towards each other, embrace, snuggle, cuddle, sit close together) and always try to have your hands on the belly somehow.
Poses for next to the window
Poses for on the bed
Poses for the nursery/other spaces of the home
Poses for couples/families
I hope these tips help you document this beautiful season of life for you!
Remember, if you need editing help I am here for you and will do my best. Reach out to me (my email is sara@sarazinnphotography.com or message me in the group!), and I will send you a link to upload your images.
If this was helpful, make sure to comment below/share your images in our group! (if you feel comfortable doing so!) I can’t wait to see what you create and capture <3